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The remarks by one of the Delhi gang rape convict blaming the victim for the assault are “unspeakable”, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s spokesperson has said, stressing the need for men to get involved in halting violence against women.
Ban’s spokesperson Stephane Dujarric refused to further comment on the remarks made by Mukesh Singh, the driver of the bus in which the 23-year-old paramedical student was brutally gang-raped by six men on December 16, 2012.
“I’m not going to comment on the unspeakable comments that were made by the person accused of raping this girl, but I think the Secretary-General has spoken very clearly on the need to halt violence against women and on the need for men to get involved in halting violence against women and decrying it loud and clear every time it occurs,” Dujarric said.
In an interview for a documentary on the rape of the girl, Singh appeared unrepentant for the abhorrent crime.
Amid wide public outrage over Singh’s controversial remarks, the Indian government has banned the documentary on the 2012 gang rape India’s Daughter.
The government has secured a court injunction to stop the airing of the documentary across all media platforms in India.
When asked to comment on the Indian government’s decision to not air the documentary and freedom of the press, Dujarric refused to make any comments.
“I'm not going to get into it. Our position on freedom of the press is clear. Some countries have different rules regarding the viewing of evidence during judicial proceedings. I’m not aware of the full details of it, so I’ll leave it at that,” he said.